“Flatbed was established in 1989 and over the past twenty eight years our vision has always been to serve artists in helping them create etchings, woodcuts, lithographs and monotypes. We also strive to educate the public about the fine art print by showing exhibitions by top notch artists working in printmaking media.” - Founder, Director Katherine Brimberry

“I really saw a need as a printmaker and artist myself – I’d just come out of graduate school and needed a studio with a press to continue my practice. Printmaking takes specialty equipment and it takes space and most people don’t have that equipment or a space for it.. That’s why all over the world, you find printmaking communities sharing a community space. Austin just didn’t have one, and that’s what I wanted to create. After establishing Flatbed, I found another calling as a collaborating master printer. Working with artists who didn’t have technical training for printmaking methods gave Flatbed the dimension of publishing editions and monoprints by many important artists. As we moved into exhibiting and selling the prints created at Flatbed we began to educate the public about the museum quality multiple originals prints.” Co-founder, Director Katherine Brimberry

Goals

Flatbed will provide educational programs, community access, independent and collaborative residencies and publishing opportunities for emerging and established artists.  Flatbed seeks to engage the community through its exhibition program and increase the appreciation and understanding of the fine art print.

Flatbed operates a professional collaborative printmaking studio, Flatbed Press, and a separate open community studio, known as Community Press, where it mentors, educates, explores and seeks to expand the role of traditional and innovative printmaking. Flatbed’s gallery houses the archived inventory of prints available for purchase and represents and exhibits artists working with printmaking media and their related works.

The Big Dance

On August 30, 2024, Art This Week Productions filmed this artist talk by Katherine Brimberry at St. Edward’s University. This talk was filmed in conjunction with the exhibition, The Big Dance: Printmaking Collaborations at Flatbed Press on view at the museum, August 26 – October 3 , 2024.